I'm getting back into tennis and need a good workout to help me play a more power game. I recently joined a gym and have been lifting weights.

I am wanting to improve my:

Serve speed
Core (for like for forehand/backhand)
Balance
Legs

any advice is welcome :)

Thanks for the help!

Vyse

03-17-2010 08:09 PM

Squats, deadlifts, bench, military press. That is where it is at

Itagaki

03-18-2010 07:11 AM

and Turkish Get Ups

charliefedererer

03-18-2010 11:56 AM

This sports fitness advisor website has a good overview of weight training for tennis, and advises a three phase approach of advancing from a foundation strenght phase to maximal strength phase to a strenght endurance power phase. They also stress the need for a rotator cuff and forearm program through all three phases to help prevent the all-too-common shoulder, elbow and wrist injuries that plague even tennis players who lift for strength, but fail to do this specific regimen as well.http://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com...-training.html

Slazenger07

03-27-2010 11:23 AM

Make Squats, Dead lifts, Stiff Leg Deadlifts, Bench Press and Dumbbell Bench, Leg Press, Dips, Pullups, Chinups, Ab Wheel a regular part of your routines. Also include isolation work for best muscle development. And remember: 1-6 reps for strength, 8-12 for size, 13+ for endurance.

Once youve got size youre happy with Id recommend spending some time training your legs in the 12-15 rep range. This will help develop you endurance fibers and keep your legs from getting as tired after running all over the court. I trained my legs like this for a couple months and still continue to do it from time to time and have noticed a great improvement in the endurance of my leg muscles.

Highly recommend it!

Djokovicfan4life

03-27-2010 12:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Slazenger07
(Post 4507879)

Make Squats, Dead lifts, Stiff Leg Deadlifts, Bench Press and Dumbbell Bench, Leg Press, Dips, Pullups, Chinups, Ab Wheel a regular part of your routines. Also include isolation work for best muscle development. And remember: 1-6 reps for strength, 8-12 for size, 13+ for endurance.

Once youve got size youre happy with Id recommend spending some time training your legs in the 12-15 rep range. This will help develop you endurance fibers and keep your legs from getting as tired after running all over the court. I trained my legs like this for a couple months and still continue to do it from time to time and have noticed a great improvement in the endurance of my leg muscles.

Highly recommend it!

Why does a beginner need two types of deadlifts, leg presses in addition to squats, and two kinds of benching (not even a different angle, mind you, just BB vs. DB), with isolation exercises thrown on top as well?

OP, I would highly suggest keeping things simple. I suggest making the heavy compound lifts your staples, this means squat, bench, deadlift, overhead press, power clean. If you push yourself, and I mean really push yourself you'll see results. This means as soon as you get all your reps, increase the weight. Don't even think twice about it.

You don't really state a specific goal in your post, you just say you want to "improve". If you mean adding some mass you're gonna have to eat a lot, probably twice as much as you think you need. However, since you're new to weight training a lot of your strength gains will come from technical improvements rather than pure mass. Learn how to do things right from the start. Don't ever get to a point where you assume your technique is "good". Increases in weight can mess with it (ex: cheating the depth on heavy squats) so always be aware of your form when lifting. Even the most experienced powerlifters would tell you this.

Make Squats, Dead lifts, Stiff Leg Deadlifts, Bench Press and Dumbbell Bench, Leg Press, Dips, Pullups, Chinups, Ab Wheel a regular part of your routines. Also include isolation work for best muscle development. And remember: 1-6 reps for strength, 8-12 for size, 13+ for endurance.

Once youve got size youre happy with Id recommend spending some time training your legs in the 12-15 rep range. This will help develop you endurance fibers and keep your legs from getting as tired after running all over the court. I trained my legs like this for a couple months and still continue to do it from time to time and have noticed a great improvement in the endurance of my leg muscles.

Highly recommend it!

I still think if you do rep ranges of 1-6 your gonna get bigger. With strength, comes size.

Djokovicfan4life

03-27-2010 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vyse
(Post 4507996)

I still think if you do rep ranges of 1-6 your gonna get bigger. With strength, comes size.

Yes, this is especially true for beginners. Best thing I ever did was train using 5 rep sets and eating a ton.

Vyse

03-27-2010 12:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Djokovicfan4life
(Post 4508016)

Yes, this is especially true for beginners. Best thing I ever did was train using 5 rep sets and eating a ton.

Did you do the 5x5 routine?

Djokovicfan4life

03-27-2010 12:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vyse
(Post 4508025)

Did you do the 5x5 routine?

Starting Strength. 3 heavy sets across per exercise. Still not finished with it-- I've got lots of catching up to do once my arm heals. My left arm looks like a wet noodle right now (literally wet, the sweat is disgusting). :)

After that I'm thinking I'll do Wendler's 5/3/1.

Vyse

03-27-2010 12:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Djokovicfan4life
(Post 4508036)

Starting Strength. 3 heavy sets across per exercise. Still not finished with it-- I've got lots of catching up to do once my arm heals. My left arm looks like a wet noodle right now (literally wet, the sweat is disgusting). :)

After that I'm thinking I'll do Wendler's 5/3/1.

Interesting. You can do it man, good luck with your arm. I did the 5/3/1. Still kind of am. My squat went up alot, certainly wasn't high to begin with so it probably didn't have a choice. Seems like a great routine to me. Simple and effective.

fuzz nation

04-03-2010 06:01 PM

My legs have seen night-and-day better strength and endurance for tennis when I ride a bicycle two or three times a week.

Balance: Took some yoga classes from a friend who got into instruction and after a couple of weeks, it was as though I had a gyroscope installed in my core somewhere. My balance was better than ever and my movement became much more effortless - I was probably only faster on the courts in my high school days when I also played soccer.

A thought: Anyone can hit a ball really hard... once. To have power in your tennis game, you need strength and endurance so that you can repeat a powerful swing over and over again without breaking down, but that's only part of the solution.

If you want more power in your strokes, you also need to move and prepare more efficiently so that you can take a longer swing at the ball. Most often, hitting harder strokes is about learning earlier preparation.

I didnt mean throw all of those exercises together into one workout, jeez that would be overkill! They should be regulars in anyone's workout split tho.

You should breath out as you begin the concentric portion of the lift, breath in as you begin the eccentric portion. You shouldnt hold your breath during reps.

Slazenger07

04-21-2010 08:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Djokovicfan4life
(Post 4508016)

Yes, this is especially true for beginners. Best thing I ever did was train using 5 rep sets and eating a ton.

I started out training in the 6-12 rep range, never going lower than 6 reps for a long time, eating a ton and started making big gains within a couple months, In strength and size. That was 3.5 years ago, I still rarely go below 6reps when Im training. Usually keep it in the 8-12 range. Everyone always suggests beginners start strength training first, I dont really get why this is the popular choice, as I feel you would get better mass gains if you just stick with a hypertrophy range from the beginning.

Must say, my chest is aching really good all over right now and was super pumped after my workout. Ill do this one for four weeks then change it up like I usually do.

Vyse

04-21-2010 08:21 PM

The most annoying though with lifting during this time especially to gain muscle is being sore during tennis. After the first 10 minutes, you feel fine but afterward, you will probably be pretty tired. This will add up over time

Itagaki

04-22-2010 07:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Slazenger07
(Post 4584015)

I started out training in the 6-12 rep range, never going lower than 6 reps for a long time, eating a ton and started making big gains within a couple months, In strength and size. That was 3.5 years ago, I still rarely go below 6reps when Im training. Usually keep it in the 8-12 range. Everyone always suggests beginners start strength training first, I dont really get why this is the popular choice, as I feel you would get better mass gains if you just stick with a hypertrophy range from the beginning.

Must say, my chest is aching really good all over right now and was super pumped after my workout. Ill do this one for four weeks then change it up like I usually do.

I think the point for beginners to start with strength training in large compound movements is that for one, increased strength comes with increased size, and two: once you have a stronger base and are stronger overall, it will allow you to lift more weight once you venture into the hypertrophy range which i imagine equates to greater gains

cncretecwbo

04-25-2010 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Slazenger07
(Post 4583971)

You should breath out as you begin the concentric portion of the lift, breath in as you begin the eccentric portion. You shouldnt hold your breath during reps.

unless you have a high blood pressure or something, the safest way and best way to lift the most weight is to take a breath before you begin the eccentric portion and HOLD the breath until you pass the "sticking" point of the concentric portion.

not only will this let you produce more force, but it also stabilizes your core/back/spine for the part of the lift with the most pressure on those areas.

TennisBeginner

04-25-2010 07:57 AM

I was also thinking about training up my legs, how many squats should I be doing?

Djokovicfan4life

04-25-2010 08:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cncretecwbo
(Post 4592750)

unless you have a high blood pressure or something, the safest way and best way to lift the most weight is to take a breath before you begin the eccentric portion and HOLD the breath until you pass the "sticking" point of the concentric portion.

not only will this let you produce more force, but it also stabilizes your core/back/spine for the part of the lift with the most pressure on those areas.

Yeah, people who swear by breathing during reps should ask a high level powerlifter what they do. I guarantee they hold it throughout the rep.

Djokovicfan4life

04-25-2010 08:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TennisBeginner
(Post 4592851)

I was also thinking about training up my legs, how many squats should I be doing?

Before I broke my arm I was squatting 3 times a week with very little problems. Sounds like a lot, but for beginners who can't lift serious weights yet this is not overdoing it.